


Jimmy's Raven

by BirdNerd_10K



Category: Wild Kratts
Genre: Animals, Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2020-12-23
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:28:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28273875
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BirdNerd_10K/pseuds/BirdNerd_10K
Summary: A raven steals Jimmy's controller. Jimmy chases. And now he's lost in the forest. But help might be closer than it seems...
Relationships: Jimmy Z & the Wild Kratts
Comments: 2
Kudos: 6





	Jimmy's Raven

Jimmy normally wouldn’t charge into the wilderness with no plans at all and go chasing after an animal. That was for the Kratt bros. Jimmy was all for relaxing in his chair munching pizza or teleporting things the bros needed, or snoozing in his hammock, or piloting the Tortuga. Simply put, staying safe and comfy in his Tortuga. But when that animal, a big raven to be specific, had come in through the sunroof and absconded with his beloved controller, well...he didn’t think about being terrified of the wilderness. He hadn’t even thought about getting lost in it. Jimmy could’ve called the crew, but that raven was so fast he might have never seen his controller again if he had hesitated! Besides, Koki was the only one even at the Tortuga (the bros and Aviva were away in the wilderness looking for Little Howler’s wolf pack) but Koki was welding and temporarily unaware of the world around her.

What Jimmy should have done was brought a creature pod when he ran after the raven. That would’ve been the smart thing to do. Even the bros, who were _experts_ at this kind of crazy thing, always (except for the times they forgot) brought their creature pods. But Jimmy hadn’t, and now he was who knows where in a forest wilderness, chasing the raven that stillhad his controller. He realized now (too late)that he had recklessly rushed into the wilderness and was likely to get lost, if he wasn’t already lost from the raven’s direction-changing. He wanted to run back and try to find the Tortuga, but the sight of his controller, only a little out of his grasp, spurred him onward.

He ran as fast as he could. His lack of stamina and the rugged terrain, however, kept him stopping frequently to catch his breath. He wheezed and gasped as he battled to keep the raven in sight. The raven flew slowly, sometimes circling, sometimes even landing, waiting for him to keep chasing. It was vexing to say the least. The raven soared over the trees until it came to a small clearing. Then it skimmed low over a small rocky hill and dropped down from Jimmy’s view. Exhausted, Jimmy stumbled around the hill after it. There he stopped, panting and leaning against a rock. The raven had landed near the top of the hill on a boulder. It had one big clawed foot on his controller.

“That’s…my controller!” Jimmy called out to it, after getting his breath back. He scrambled with renewed vigor. He was so close! The raven cawed in its throat and picked up the controller, looking down at Jimmy from behind the device. No, not again, the raven couldn’t take off again! The raven shifted its beak and the controller wobbled. “ _No-o!_ ” Jimmy cried as the controller slipped from the bird’s beak. His controller was falling straight for the rocky ground! Jimmy leaped. He landed on his stomach, arms outstretched, hands extended. His controller landed...in his upturned hands!

He cheered. “My controller! Oh, I’m _never_ gonna let you out of my sight, ever.” Jimmy hugged his controller.

“ _Cawr._ ” The raven cawed in a deep voice and tilted its head at him.

Jimmy glared at it. “You stay away from my controller.” He protectively tucked his controller closer to him. If ravens could chuckle, this one did.

Jimmy shot the raven another angry look and sighed. He loved animals (except maybe certain ones when they tried to take off with his controller). But he wasn’t good with them, at interacting with them. He tried, he really did. He just always seemed to mess up. Like the time he’d tried to befriend what he thought was a kitty, only to find out it was a skunk he’d unwittingly provoked to spray him. Or like the time he’d tried to gently pick up a little tenrec but made it nervous and he got a finger full of its spines. There were lots of times like this. More times than he cared to recall.

And he was scared of animals, too. Many animals, but especially mountain lions, rattlesnakes, Komodo dragons, whatever dangerous animals were currently lurking in this wilderness… He shuddered. He really needed to find the Tortuga. Fast. He climbed the top of the hill, hoping to glimpse the Tortuga. He probably wasn’t far from it, considering he wasn’t the greatest athlete. But the hill was too short to see above the trees.

And he didn’t even know which general direction he needed to go. He hadn’t been paying attention when he was running. And every part of the forest looked as unfamiliar as the other. Jimmy tried to think what to do to find his way back, but rising panic was snatching his thoughts away as fast as he could think them. His mind spun. Fear tore at his breath, making him feel as if he’d been running to breathlessness again. He felt that he was shrinking on the miniaturizer. Getting more vulnerable and helpless and lost each second…

“ _Caw_ _rr_ _!_ ” The sudden noise startled Jimmy.

“ _Aaaaahh!_ ” He screamed and frantically dived for the nearest cover, a thin bush, and crash-landed behind it. He’d done his diving-crash-landing-hiding technique a lot, so it didn’t really hurt anymore. He poked his head up to look and realized it was only the raven. The raven eyed him, then let out an explosive caw that was like laughter.

But Jimmy wasn’t in a laughing mood. Not at all.

Jimmy was terrified. And lost, alone, exhausted. His head hurt. He just wanted to be home. And he had no idea what to do. Even his beloved controller couldn’t do anything for him right now. So he sat down and cried. Crying didn’t help any, but he didn’t know what would.

An indefinite time later, he lifted his head, sniffling and hiccuping. He wiped his eyes. And he was completely startled to see the raven was right in front of him on the ground, only an arm’s length away. He froze. The raven was huge! And its beak…. What had Chris and Martin said about ravens’ beaks, how strong they were? A beak as sharp as a knife and able to break small bones? The bones in his fingers certainly were small! Jimmy quickly tucked his hands against his body. The raven moved closer, so it was almost touching him.

“You’re...you’re not gonna bite me, right?” Jimmy whimpered.

In response the raven swelled up its shaggy throat and made a sweet liquid sound.

“What kind of raven sound is that?” Jimmy asked. It was surprisingly pleasant. The raven made another liquid sound, then an odd, muffled caw.

The raven looked different close up. Not just black, in the sunlight its handsome feathers shined green and purple iridescence. And its dark eyes were intelligent. Almost friendly, too, as it gazed at him. Even though this creature had stolen his controller and led him out here, Jimmy knew the raven hadn’t meant harm. The Kratt bros had told him ravens were curious and often took off with things that interested them. Jimmy was definitely still upset about it all, nearly loosing his controller _and_ being totally lost. But…

The raven didn’t know Jimmy’s controller was so important to him that it was the only effective (but cruel) way to wake him up from even the deepest sleep. It didn’t know what great lengths Jimmy had gone to before to rescue his controller, like almost crash-landing the whole Tortuga. It didn’t know Jimmy spent hours lovingly polishing and tending the controller. It didn’t know Jimmy had spent countless hours with his controller, video gaming, teleporting, napping, sharing good memories. And it didn’t know Jimmy wouldn’t be able to find his way back home after the little chase. No, it wasn’t the raven’s fault. It was just being a raven.

These were a small consolation right then, though. Because completely benign intentions or not didn’t help Jimmy get back to his Tortuga. _And_ Jimmy knew he wouldn’t be lost at all if only he’d brought a creature pod. Or just hadn’t heedlessly rushed off into the forest in the first place. He sighed and hugged his controller against him. Well, he had his controller safe and unharmed. They would get through this together.

He hoped the crew would realize his absence s _oon._ Reality, however, was that it would be a while. Koki, who would probably notice first since she was at the Tortuga, was busy tuning it up and would be for a while. Even if she hollered for Jimmy to help and got no response, she’d probably assume he was snoozing. Jimmy _was_ a pretty sound sleeper, he had to admit. And how would the crew even know where to look for him, once they realized he’d disappeared?

Movement drew Jimmy out of his head-throbbing thoughts. The raven was poking its beak at some rocks and nibbling them curiously. Jimmy wished he had something to nibble. Food always made him feel better. Pizza and chocolate-chip cookies in particular. And he then remembered he had a pizza slice in his pocket from that morning! He snatched it out and chomped eagerly. “Yum!” After a couple big bites and the slice was nearly gone, he paused. The raven’s bright eyes were fixed on his pizza. Jimmy blinked. Did the raven want to taste it? Ravens did eat almost anything, Chris had told him. Omni...omnivorous, was what he thought Martin had called it. And pizza, well, you didn’t get much better food-wise.

Jimmy pulled a chunk off and offered it to the raven. But as the bird gaped and stretched out to take the interesting delicacy, Jimmy realized he’d forgotten about that beak, that four-inch long, knife-sharp beak with crushing power to back it. Oh no! He shut his eyes but kept his trembling arm stretched out. Something tugged the food from his fingers. Gently. Then something smooth nudged his hand. In a friendly way.

Jimmy carefully opened his eyes, to find his hand (and more importantly, fingers) fully intact. The raven nudged his fingers again with its beak. Then it met his eyes, in a soulful gaze. Jimmy smiled. He didn’t know why, exactly. Maybe because he was just happy his fingers were unharmed. Maybe because he had, one of the few times in his life, not let his fear overcome him into running away from what frightened him. Or maybe because the raven seemed to like him, to want to be friends with him.

The last thought made his heart warm. He pulled off another piece of pizza and the raven accepted it. Then, cautiously, Jimmy reached out and touched the raven. Just a quick, careful stroke on the neck, across those glossy feathers so smooth they couldn’t be felt. The raven didn’t snap its beak or dodge. It seemed to actually appreciate the returned friendly gesture. And although he was lost and still scared and didn’t know how to get back, Jimmy somehow didn’t feel panicked anymore. This raven—he needed a name, Jimmy mused—was here with him.

And his entire mood lightened as another realization came. The Kratt bros had told him over and over how smart ravens were, how adaptable, intelligent, all that. Well, if Jimmy was lost in the wilderness, what better than to follow not just any wilderness-dweller, but one of the smartest of all? It should help by showing him how to get by in the forest. If he just stayed with the raven, it might even lead him back home! Or at least it should make it easier for the Kratt bros to find him, because they found animals like they were magnetized or something. And no matter what, the raven would be company for him, someone to talk to.

“If you could take me home...the place you found this,” Jimmy held up his controller and the raven tilted its head, “if you could take me back home, that would be awesome. Not complaining or anything, you—raven—ah, you need a name. Let’s see, um, um...” Martin was the creature-namer king, but Jimmy didn’t feel right calling the raven “you” or “raven.” “Let’s see...um...” He looked around the forest, hoping for inspiration, then he focused on the raven. “Shadow!” he said the first name that he thought. The raven croaked in response.

“You like it?” Jimmy smiled. “Shadow?” The raven—Shadow—croaked again. “Right-i-o! So, Shadow, how about taking me home? Pretty please?”

  
  


  
  


Shadow didn’t understand English, and Jimmy didn’t understand Raven. Nonetheless, Jimmy hoped Shadow was heading for the Tortuga. There was a definite possibility of it. Jimmy wished he could go faster. Shadow had to keep slowing down, circling in place or dropping to the ground, to wait for Jimmy. Thankfully, Shadow seemed to have as much patience as when he had been teasing Jimmy with his controller. Jimmy searched his pockets for crumbs to offer as a thank-you, but there wasn’t anything.

Then Jimmy stopped. He heard what sounded like the rustling of something moving through the grass and leaves. “W-Who’s there?” There was the rustling again, louder. Jimmy gulped and shivered. “Sh-Sh-Shadow, do you see a-anything?” he whispered, as Shadow perched on a branch above him. Shadow concentrated on something at the base of a nearby tree. Jimmy started to edge away when the leaves _swooshed_ loudly and something streaked in front of him. “Aaagh!” Jimmy dived for the nearest tree. Whatever it was rushed through the leaves again and scampered up a tree. Jimmy tremblingly poked his head out. A startled gray squirrel stared at him from a tree trunk, nervously flicking its fluffy tail.

“O-Oh,” Jimmy said. His heart still thudded violently, but he was relieved that it was a harmless squirrel. Shadow’s expression, however, made Jimmy feel judged. Very judged. “I-I knew it was a squirrel! I was, er...practicing! In case we…you know, meet a wolf or something.” Shadow made a huffing caw. Jimmy sighed. Shadow had probably lost all respect, what was left of it, for him now.

After more trekking through the forest, Jimmy couldn’t go any further without rest. Panting and dragging his feet, he slumped against a mossy fallen tree to recover. Shadow, circling above, swooped down and landed. “Sorry...need...a…break...ugh...” Jimmy leaned his head back and let his cap drop over his eyes. He heard Shadow flapping and tipped his cap up enough to see Shadow perched on a branch on the log, next to him, shoulder height. Shadow ruffled, shook his tail, and started grooming his feathers. Good; Shadow was alright about resting. Now Jimmy could rest too.

He exhaled contently, stretched, and closed his eyes. He felt strangely peaceful. He was thirsty and still hungry, but that slowly faded from his mind. The log was spongy and cool. The refreshing breeze played with the tree leaves and grass like they were instruments, rustling them quietly. Birds were singing harmoniously. The air smelled of trees and earth, and the log smelled of damp earthy wood and fresh moss. Jimmy hadn’t thought the wild wilderness could be so...relaxing. In no time at all Jimmy dozed.

He awoke to his cap suddenly lifted and light flooding his sleepy eyes. “What?” He instinctively reached for his controller; it was there, cradled in his arms. He rubbed his eyes. Shadow was leaning over and staring at him. Then he pushed Jimmy’s cap higher. Jimmy chuckled softly. “You don’t want me to snooze anymore?” Shadow gurgled and clicked, bobbing his head. “I guess I do need to find that Tortuga.” Shadow reached out and nibbled Jimmy’s hair. Jimmy held still. Then Shadow’s huge beak moved and began nibbling delicately at Jimmy’s freckles, tickling him. Jimmy reached out and rubbed Shadow’s neck feathers, watching happily as Shadow fluffed up and half-closed his eyes.

It was strange, that he, Jimmy, wasn’t afraid anymore of this hawk-sized bird with a knife-sharp beak only inches from his face and fingers. In fact, he found it comforting. But Jimmy knew now that Shadow wouldn’t hurt him. Shadow was his friend. Jimmy certainly hadn’t expected to find a great friend in the birdglar that absconded with his controller. He was almost...glad? That Shadow had stolen his controller? Really? Glad his controller, his most precious possession, almost got lost forever? But he might not have met Shadow otherwise and not realized how special he was. Yes…meeting and knowing Shadow seemed worth the fright Jimmy had had. Jimmy started feeling drowsy and his fingers slowed their sifting through Shadow’s feathers, but before he could try to doze again, Shadow pulled his cap insistently and cawed in his ear.

“Okay, okay!” Jimmy stretched and yawned noisily, prompting Shadow to caw again. Jimmy stood up, still stretching and rubbing himself and waking up. Awake enough to walk, he climbed on the log and surveyed the area. He gasped, tipped sideways, and tumbled off the log as his feet slipped. He sprang up and back onto the log, to look again. He almost couldn’t believe it. The _Tortuga!_ He’d _found_ it! The sunroof was emerging above the treetops, barely visible, but there.

“Shadow, Shadow, you led me back! Oh yeah! Tortuga, _here we come!_ ” Jimmy jumped from the log and danced joyfully, giddy with relief. Shadow watched and cawed, then flapped his wings and hopped around, affected by Jimmy’s contagious excitement. “Come on, buddy!” Jimmy waved an arm at Shadow before dashing for the turtle-ship. It would only be minutes, not too many of them, and he’d be back on board the Tortuga! He was going home!

Jimmy lost sight of the Tortuga when he left the log, but he knew which direction to go. Shadow was flying that way too, so Jimmy definitely wouldn’t get lost, not this time. Each step brought him closer to the Tortuga, the crew, his chair, his fridge, his home…

**Author's Note:**

> Oh, did you think it was over? It's only the beginning! (kinda. It's only the halfway point.) 
> 
> This was my very first fanfiction I wrote, so it's not the best. But I hope you enjoy anyways!


End file.
